


A Light in Dark Places

by blanketed_in_stars



Series: 52 Weeks of Wolfstar [1]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Hogwarts Fifth Year, M/M, Marauder's Era (Harry Potter), Marauders, Marauders' Era
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-01-07
Updated: 2015-01-07
Packaged: 2018-03-06 14:50:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 781
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3138290
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/blanketed_in_stars/pseuds/blanketed_in_stars
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The library is quiet, Remus is suspicious, and Sirius is having a minor breakdown.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Light in Dark Places

**Author's Note:**

> Week 1

Well, really, Sirius thinks, this has taken long enough. It's about damn time he plucked up the nerve to do something.

Still, his hands are shaking. The pounding of his heart practically makes his tie flap on his chest. His stomach is doing rapid somersaults and it's making his breathing a little uneven. Maybe this wasn't a good idea.

"Hey, Sirius."

But he can't walk away now. "Hey," he says, just a second too late, and drops into the chair next to Remus. "What're you reading?"

With a sigh, Remus closes the book. It's thick enough that the sound it makes muffled echoes through the library. No one's near to hear it, though; Remus seeks out dark, isolated places to study. "Nothing important. Why are you here? I thought you were catching up on Potions homework." He narrows his eyes. "You haven't set the dungeon on fire again, have you?"

Sirius raises an eyebrow. "Me? Never." He laughs at Remus's expression. "Relax. I left early because Bertram Aubrey kept poking his head over my cauldron and insisting that he knew what was wrong with it."

"Did he?"

"Of course not! It was fine!"

"Then why are you sweating?"

"I'm not sweating." His anxiety has faded—that's one of the things he loves most about Remus, his calm and the way it spreads over everyone near him. But it comes back in full force now, making swallowing difficult.

"Yes, you are. What happened?"

"Nothing happened," Sirius insists.

Remus is not fooled. "You only look this nervous when you've just done something ridiculous, or you're about to. So, out with it."

Sirius looks away and sighs. He should have known that this wouldn't be easy, should have expected to get caught. Of course, it's not as if he had a plan to begin with. So he clears his throat and looks into Remus's eyes. The gloom of this shadowy black corner deepens their usual bright color. "Slughorn's having another party," he begins.

"Are you sure he'll let you come if you keep skiving off his classes?"

Sirius ignores the question. "It's a Christmas party," he continues, "and we're allowed to bring guests."

Remus opens his book again. "You won't have any problems with that," he says as he skims to find the right page. "I heard Bertha Jorkins caught you kissing Florence behind the greenhouses."

"That wasn't me!" It's infuriating, trying to grind the words out while his tongue swells up. Why won't Remus look at him? Is he really that uninterested?

"Mary Macdonald, then. You know half the girls in the school will say yes if you just ask." Remus locates the correct passage and leans forward. "You probably wouldn't even have to say please."

"I don't want to go with any of them," Sirius says. This was a horrible idea. He is going to get up, walk out, and go back to Gryffindor Tower. As if from a great distance, he hears his own voice. "I want to go with you."

Remus's head jerks up. "What?"

"Um." Sirius can feel his face burning. When he'd imagined this scene, a few hundred times, he'd been smiling and tipping his chair back. Now he just stammers. "I—I want to go to Slughorn's party with you, Remus."

Remus laughs, and Sirius's heart stops. "With me?"

"Yeah." He lets out his breath slowly. "I mean, if you don't want to, that's fine, but—"

"As friends?"

Sirius shakes his head mechanically, his face somehow growing hotter. "N-no…"

A wide smile breaks across Remus's face. "Dammit, Sirius," he breathes, "what took you so long?"

Remus never curses. Sirius is so surprised that it takes a few moments for the words to work their way through his brain. "What?" The beginning of a smile tugs at his own mouth.

"I said," Remus repeats, closing his book slowly, "what took you so long?" He's still beaming.

Sirius can only blink for a moment. Then he laughs, a little higher than normal, a leftover reaction from his pounding heart. "Well," he says, and has to stop, because it's hard to talk with such a giant grin plastered across his face. At last he gets out, "I guess we'll just have to make up for lost time."

There's a familiar look in Remus's eyes, one that he usually only sees on James—mischievous, excited, and not at all shy. They're already leaning towards each other, but now Remus closes the distance. His lips are chapped but soft. "We have a lot of catching up to do," he whispers, and Sirius is glad that they're in the back of the library. "Do you think this is a good way to start?"


End file.
